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Smart Goal Setting – 5 Tips to Success

Written by: Debra Gould

Article Overview: Intrepid Entrepreneur and expert home stager, Staging Diva, offers five timely tips for setting and reaching your goals.

Smart Goal Setting – 5 Tips to Success

Every January most of us feel the urge to make the New Year our best one yet. While a new year is a great time to evaluate your life and your future, you may feel a lot of pressure to do something big to initiate a life change at the beginning of a new calendar year.

If you didn’t make any resolutions last year as you watched the ball drop, don’t feel bad about it. You can set goals whenever you want – it doesn’t have to be on January 1st!

Do you find it difficult to stick to a goal because you always lose momentum after the first couple of weeks? (How many years have you been trying to lose those same 10 pounds?)

These five tips will help keep you focused - you can reach your goals this year!

1. Write it down. Whether you want to lose weight, double your income or renovate your kitchen you should put it in writing. You’re much more likely to reach your goals if they’re written down and placed somewhere they can be seen every day to remind you.

2. List your past successes. Before you even start to write down your goals, take some time to write down your past accomplishments. Think back and write down anything you consider a personal success. For example, did you run a marathon, recover from cancer, buy your first house before you were 30, beat out hundreds of applicants for a specific job or to get into a certain school, win an award, raise money for a cause, raise happy and healthy children, start your own business? When you remember all the great things you’ve made happen in your life, you’ll feel empowered and this will put you in the right frame of mind to achieve the new goals you set for your future.

3. Be specific. Don’t set vague goals, be very specific and make sure your goals are realistic, measurable and attainable. Instead of a general statement that you want to be healthy in 2009, write your goal as, “Lose 5 pounds per month and exercise 30 minute each day.” And if your general goal is to double your profit and you have your own business, be specific about how that could be achieved. For example, "add one more project or client per month and reduce operating costs by 50%." This puts you in the right mindset to be able to plan how you'll achieve that goal.

4. Tell someone. Another good way to increase your chance of success is to declare your goals to others and find someone to hold you accountable as you work towards meeting them. But choose who you share your goals with carefully. It needs to be someone who genuinely wants you to succeed and won't feel insecure or threatened by your success. If for example, you and your best friend are both overweight and she has no intention of losing, she likely won't support you in your own weight loss goals. If you're trying to grow your own business and you're surrounded by others on the road to bankruptcy, they'll be in no position to support your growth. For these reasons, it's sometimes preferable to hire a coach. Their role is to support your success and motivate you to keep going.

5. Use visuals. You’ve probably heard of a ‘Vision Board’. Maybe you have one or maybe you’ve brushed the idea off. The truth is a strong visual representation of your goals can help you reach them. If you want to start your own business, for example, clip out photos from magazines that represent that to you. Don't be too literal. Think also of what being in your own business will mean to your income, sense of self and lifestyle. When you look at those images, your subconscious will continue to keep you focused on achieving your goals without you even knowing it.

Make 2009 the last year you set those same goals for yourself by setting yourself up for success from the beginning.

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Article Tags: ball drop, calendar year, cancer, first house, frame of mind, great time, january 1st, job, marathon, momentum, money, new goals, new year, own business, personal success, resolutions, successes, urge, vague goals, year 1



Related Forum Posts
Business Tips - How about: Tips for managers to handle employees more effectively? Tips on how to deal with difficult customers? Tips on how to deal more effectively with suppliers? The only three I have in mind right now, but will try to come up with something else. Chris
Re: What are your January Goals? - Here's a quick update on mine: Goal #1: Hire New Writer = done - Post job description on oDesk - Set up trial job - Pick top candidate Goal #2: Follow up with Clients = done - Create and send quarterly report - Touch base with last year's clients - Follow up with 4 connectors Goal #3: PERSONAL = about 70% done on the month - Do something nice for my wife each week - Exercise 4 times per week - Daily stretch - want to touch my toes
Re: Drop out Billionaire - I reveived Bill Bartmann's DVD "9 Steps To Achieve Any Goal" as part of my monthly pack from Success University a few months back. It is a great presentation. I've watched it several times but not for a while so I'll view it again in the coming week. He is one of the greats. Like the best success mentors, he speaks with authority because he has come through much tribulation. His program sounds like a great bargain at $100 a year.
LEADERS - L- Loyal E- Eager to learn and serve A- Active D- Delegate E- Efficient R- Reliable S- Smart
Re: How do you monitor what people say about you in the web? - Setting up Google alerts for your keywords can give updates about your site. Also the publicity you create in the social media sites will do help too


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